I raced my XR at the kart track yesterday and spent this morning mowing the lawn. While doing the latter, I began to wonder if there isn't some kind of mower deck that is self-powered, but could be towed behind a small dirt bike. This would make Sunday morning infinitely more fun. It would probably also make my lawn look like hell, but I'm shockingly okay with that if it rationalizes something like a 200-300cc enduro in my garage, an getting rid of the push mower. To be fair, this would only be practical for a large yard, which I plan to have at my NEXT house. But I want to plant the seed now for another bike. My wife has her endorsement, so this would be "her" bike. At least on paper.
Doesn't matter the method of how you pull it, trailer style pull mowers will never give you that crisp cut unless your just brush chopping. If that's what your doing then it'll work great, otherwise find you a Exmark walk behind or zero turn. Last forever, hold their value, unlimited parts available, and plenty of used ones on the market
There is a company call Swisher I think that makes tow behind mower decks that are self powered. No experience with them but was looking at them several years ago when I had approx. 3 acres to cut. I never did buy one though, just kept using the John Deere rider.
Swisher tow behind bush hog I had was useless. They also make a finish mower that should work ok, but unless you're training for trials riding or have some fascination with balancing a dirt bike at 3mph for long periods of time I'd say it's a waste.
Do not get a swisher. I used to be a distributor for them here in Canada. They are garbage and you will be disappointed in them. We dropped the line and picked up another line from a company calld Kunz. Their mowers are nearly indestructible and do a good cut. I wouldn't recommend pulling it with a motorcycle, but quads work great. I have sold about 300 of them in Alberta over the last 3 years and have had very few problems. Couldn't say that for Swisher. Www.kunzeng.com
Good to know about the Swisher. Like I said, I never bought one and have no experience with them, but it sounds like you did. Thanks for letting us know!
pull behind I've had one for 25 yrs. the first was a bush hog brand roungh cut trail mower and it worked fine behind my yfm350 yamaha . I sold it to a friend and he's still using it. I then got a 42 inch cut swisher finish mower . it works fine. I mostly mow hills and banks too steep for the tractor or yard mower. i did replace the belt disengaging set up on the swisher and install a centrifugal clutch on the drive belt. it starts easier now with the pull starter and the belts last longer . I think you're reaching pretty far thinking you're going to pull and mow with a bike though . you'll probably cut a foot off. anyway I like mine it has an 11 hp brigs on it does a smooth cut and it will still mow the trails and cut off 3/4 inch sapling . I sharpen the blades and change the oil once a year and just go and mow. that's my experience with a trail behind. thanks, bill and darethea
I have a Swisher and have no problems with it.It will cut down anything that my 4 wheeler can go over.My neighbor has a Swisher finish mower and he cuts saplings up to 1 inch diameter.Like anything else it will be junk if you don't take care of it. Tom
Lots of pull type mowers out there. They work good behind a 4 wheeler but as already mentioned you couldn't go slow enough on a bike for it to be practical.
More jeers for the Swisher brand. I used to sell advertising in the lawn/garden marketplace and Swisher was one of my clients. That meant I got the calls from pissed-off consumers who bought a Swisher after seeing one of our ads. And I got a LOT of calls. My neighbor purchased one to tow behind his riding mower, used for the 10-acre lot across the street from me. Nothing but problems and he finally gave up on it and rented the land to a guy growing organic veggies.
I sold hundreds of them, I am beyond glad that we don't carry them anymore. You can not beat Kunz. They are more expensive, but you get what you pay for.
I was in the market for a pull behind swisher a few years back. Sounded like a great excuse for getting an ATV vs. a Hank Hill lawn tractor. Read lots of reviews and talked to a few shops. Overall, it sounds like the concept is good for trail and field maintenance, but not for finished lawns. An issue someone brought up is that the ATV tires (even turf tires) will flattening the grass before the mower deck gets to them, resulting in an uneven cut. Then there's the maneuverability; far wider turns than the average lawn tractor. An offset deck would be idea, but that's only good for large, multi-acre lots. Still need something to go back and clean up the tight spots. Did find one company that made an under carriage type mower deck for ATVs, something you drive over and hook up. Sounded ideal, but it was close to $2K i believe.
My neighbor uses a pull behind deck. It's about 6ft and is powered by a 5HP Briggs. Does a decent job, but when I mow mine with the garden tractor it definitely shows the quality.. If you don't care, go for it. But for the price of the deck, you could buy a good used lawn tractor for that much and it will do a better job.
